Dido and Aeneas
Sandler Center
Virginia Beach, Virginia — United States
Performances Times
May 13, 2017
8:00 pm
Works Performed
Dido and Aeneas
Music - Henry Purcell
Mark Morris Dance Group and Music Ensemble
Choreography by Mark Morris
Conducted by Mark Morris
Featuring Stephanie Blythe, mezzo-soprano
When this masterwork premiered 27 years ago, critics hailed the provocative work as “a tour de force of artistic storytelling…that smashes and rewrites boundaries” (Los Angeles Times). In revival, Morris’s Dido and Aeneas still entices the eye and raises the pulse, with Morris conducting the orchestra, choral ensemble and soloists in the 17th-century score.
“Delight defines Mark Morris’ Dido and Aeneas. Delight in sex, in music, in pathos, in mischief and even evil. Delight…and joy” (Chicago Tribune).
Music lovers will delight in the live music, as legendary opera star Stephanie Blythe sings the roles of the love-dazed Dido and the evil Sorceress. “That astonishing voice–dark, vehement, burning…to hear Ms. Blythe sing…is to hear the roles anew” (The New York Times).
Musicians
Stephanie Blythe
Dido / Sorceress
Douglas Williams
Aeneas
Sherezade Panthaki
Belinda
Marguerite Krull
Second Woman
Jason Weisinger
Sailor